Chapter 1: Last Christmas - A Year Ago

Disclaimer: I don't own Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger... I pirated it ;D

"Stop thief!"

A young man dressed in rags clutched the brown package he was holding closer to his body as he ran into another damp alleyway. Above him, snow was falling gently from the starry night, melting as soon as they impacted the ground. Lamps provided unsteady light in an ill attempt to illuminate the alleys with their flickering lights. Panting heavily, he looked back and saw that two policemen were still chasing after him.

"Stop!" one of them shouted, as their boots clacked noisily against the ground, their hands wielding clubs. "Return that package!"

The young man turned sharply to his right, surprising the policemen. Instead of hitting the wall like they assumed, he had slipped into another, more narrow, alleyway. His slim build allowed him to easily maneuver through, while his pursuers had to make do with going through one after the other.

"Damn this brat," one of them muttered, "This is going to stain my uniform."

His partner agreed, "I think I just lost a button," he said as something rolled on the ground.

The thief looked back and pushed himself through the last few feet, freeing himself from the narrow alleyway and into a more brightly lit part of town. The smell of smoke, oil and machinery assaulted him as he noticed that he was standing in front of an old concert hall. It didn't seem to be inhabited at the moment, so without a glance backwards, he ran towards it, dodging and nicking through the traffic of the streets. Cries of panic and chaos flooded the scene as he nipped through it without a care. Car drivers honked their horns at him, but he didn't stop until he reached his destination. He reached for the door and pushed open, a small creak accompanying. Taking a careful look inside, he snuck in, closing the door and bolting it with a stand he found lying near the door.

He stepped tentatively towards the stage, in slight awe of the surrounding rows and rows of elegantly carved wooden seats. The stage loomed closer towards him as he felt himself relax, certain that the police wouldn't find him here. He looked up and noticed the second floor of boxes, curtains draped behind them.

A sudden urge to go up to the boxes overwhelmed him as he quickly scanned for a way and found it in a dark stairwell leading to the second floor. He darted over there, anxious to satisfy his urge and hurry back to safety. He stepped up the stairs, two steps at a time and arrived at his destination. Pulling back the curtains, he was met with seats that looked more like thrones.

Should he, shouldn't he, the young man was tempted to sink into one of the seats. In the end, he relented and allowed himself to sit in them, maybe just for a few minutes.

He gingerly sat down, allowing himself to relax even further. This was nice, he thought.

Abruptly, the lights of the concert hall were turned on, a small electronic buzz filling the air. The young man looked around in panic, careful to be silent, but searching for the person who turned it on. A small cadence sounded from the stage as he saw a young woman a little younger than him emerge and step out into the light. Dressed in a simple pink gown, she carried a cello over to a waiting chair. Sitting down properly, she planted her feet firmly on the ground and raised her bow towards the strings. She drew the bow across the strings, the cello emitting a wail in response. Shaking her head, she turned the pegs until the instrument emitted a smoother, deeper sound. Nodding in satisfaction, she pulled out a cake of rosin and rubbed her bow on it before returning to the cello.

From above, the young man watched in interest as she played, allowing himself to be lulled to sleep by the notes. She played tentatively at first, but with each passing measure, her tone became more powerful and confident.

He lost track of time as he stayed there watching her play. As her playing lulled to a slow stop, he felt compelled to clap, to show her that her efforts weren't wasted. Before he could stop himself, his hands came together in a clap.

Startled, the girl's bow fell to the ground in a clatter.

"Who is there?" she called out, as she reached down to fetch her bow.

Feeling somewhat guilty, the young man knocked on the balcony of the box to announce his previously unknown presence.

With slightly curious eyes, she asked him, "Who are you?"

Put on the spot, he didn't know what to do, "I'm Joe Gibken," he found himself saying, then he cursed. Why did he give her his real name. "And you?"

"I am Ahim de Famille, a cellist in the orchestra here," the girl replied calmly. "What brings you up there? I did not know anyone else would be here."

"Well... I, uh..."

But before Joe could answer her, a loud cry came through the door.

"OPEN UP! THIS IS THE POLICE!"

"Damn," Joe swore, as he hid in the box, just as the two policemen barged their way into the concert hall.

"You there!" the burlier of the two pointed to Ahim who had just stared at them the whole time. "Have you seen a thief around here?"

"A thief?" Ahim laughed lightly. "Why would a thief be in this place?"

"To hide, of course!" he barked back. "When did you get here?"

"When?" Ahim pretended to think, her eyes glancing over to the box where Joe was hiding. She saw Joe's face turn stoic as his body tensed up.

"I just arrived," she replied to the policemen. "As you can see, I was about to begin practicing when you two gentlemen entered."

"So you haven't seen anyone suspicious here?"

"It has only been me here since I have arrived," Ahim said with a small bow.

"Well, if you see anyone here that shouldn't be here, let us know," the other policeman said as he tipped his cap towards Ahim. "Goodnight miss. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, officers," she waved with a smile on her face.

Ahim waited until the door was closed before she turned over to the box, "You can come out now," she called out to Joe.

Joe stepped back out into view. "Why did you cover for me?"

"Joe-san, you seem like a nice person," Ahim stated simply. "Are you the one that they were looking for?"

"I am." Joe had slipped down the stairs and was now hidden underneath the doorway that led up to the second floor. His left hand gripped his package tightly, his grip crinkling the wrapping paper.

Ahim looked towards the source of the sound, "Is that item what you stole?"

Joe nodded.

"May I see it?" Ahim asked politely.

Joe shifted uncomfortably. "I don't think it's best for you to see it."

"I merely wish to know if I made the right choice in hiding you from the authorities, Joe-san," Ahim told him.

With a small sigh, Joe walked towards Ahim. Stopping in front of her, he offered her the package. With delicate hands, she reached out and grasped it. "It is not that heavy, Joe-san," she said.

"Clothes," Joe said gruffly.

"I beg your pardon?" Ahim asked.

"It's just clothes," Joe repeated. "My friends and I needed new clothes for the winter, or we'd freeze."

Ahim nodded in understanding, "Wait here please," she said as she scurried towards the back of the stage, leaving Joe in slight alarm. When she came back alone, Joe let out a breath he was not aware that he had been holding.

"Take this," Ahim said as she returned the package along with some bills.

Joe took the package and scooped off the money, "What's with this?" he asked. "I don't need your pity."

"It is not out of pity that I give you this money," Ahim said. "It is my wish that you use this money wisely."

"What do you mean?"

"If you want to use it to pay back the store you stole from, use it like that. If you need to buy a feast for yourself and your friends, use it how you will," Ahim smiled. "If you promise me you will not steal again, I will let you take it."

"What if I decide to take off right now?" Joe countered.

"You have been so honest with me, Joe-san," Ahim replied. "I hardly think you would do such a thing."

Again, Joe cursed inwardly before he looked back to Ahim who had her pinky finger outstretched. With slight hesitation, Joe wrapped his own pinky around hers. "I promise."

"Good," Ahim turned away, and walked back to her cello. "There is a door in the back if you wish to escape here soon. No doubt the policemen will still be looking for you. However it is Christmas and they will not be doing a thorough job. They will most likely forget your face in a week."

Joe nodded dumbly, before realizing that she couldn't see him. "Okay," he said.

He walked past Ahim, clutching his package of clothes and the money she gave him. When he was near the edge of the curtains, he stopped and looked back. To his surprise, he saw Ahim staring back at him. A slight blush filled both their faces before Joe turned back towards the dark backstage.

"Thanks, Ahim," he said loud enough for her to hear. "Merry Christmas."

With that he ran off towards the door, slamming it in his wake.

Ahim giggled amusedly, "Merry Christmas, Joe-san."

Well, first things first, Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays and all that good stuff!

In all my years of writing fanfiction, I've always wanted to do something... Christmassy. You know, I've seen a bunch of Christmas fics but I've never had the time to write one. I still don't have the time to write one but you know, I churned one out.

Except it's only the first chapter. And it'll be released on a weekly basis again. Yeah. Because I can't time manage for the life of me. Yeah. Should probably work on that. But in any case, I hope you've enjoyed reading this first chapter and I hope that you enjoy your time with your families! Spend some good quality time with your families :D